Conference rooms are important in virtual offices because they serve as meeting spaces where company team members can come together to discuss projects, engage in training and build a sense of community. Virtual offices have become increasingly important in recent years, serving as central hubs for startups and established businesses alike. Although virtual office space is often lauded for the flexibility it offers for remote teams, some business owners are wary of the virtual office or coworking space concept because they are concerned about losing access to conference rooms.
The truth, however, is that virtual offices do provide access to conference rooms, both in physical office buildings and in virtual spaces. If you’ve held off on taking the virtual office plunge because you’re worried about losing out on access to conference rooms, below are some things to think about:
Why Conference Rooms Are Important
Conference rooms serve as meeting places where large groups of people can gather to work on projects and discuss ideas. For business owners, meeting rooms can also be places to hold training sessions or meet with clients and leads. These areas are kept separate from general office areas and provide a private area where only authorized individuals can gain access.
In a virtual office, conference rooms can be physical spaces that are available to be booked on a temporary basis, but they can also be digital spaces. Physical space for meetings is usually offered at the address used by the virtual office provider. These offices are often located in major metropolitan areas, but virtual offices that provide physical addresses can be found around the world.
Some virtual offices provide access to technology tools that facilitate digital conferencing using private, dedicated channels that serve as virtual conference rooms. A virtual office property manager may also offer business owners access to proprietary networking and apps that facilitate remote meetings. Whether your virtual office provides access to physical meeting spaces, online-only conference rooms or both, conference rooms for businesses using virtual offices allow everyone to meet in one convenient place to have group discussions on important topics.
Here are some of the top benefits of virtual office conference rooms:
You Can Make a Good First Impression With Meeting Rooms
Meeting rooms are often the only part of your business clients, potential clients or business partners see. This means that conference rooms are an opportunity to make a great first impression. They lend legitimacy to your business, and even if you run a startup out of your home office, you can book conference rooms through your virtual office provider to meet with clients in person. This presents a professional image for you and your company without having to lease traditional office space in an expensive city.
In a physical conference room, you want to present an inviting atmosphere that looks and feels personal. In a virtual conference room, you want to ensure that your technology works without any hiccups or glitches to facilitate a smooth meeting where everyone can see and/or hear the information being presented. Virtual office managers go to great lengths to ensure business owners are able to enjoy the benefits of on-site and digital conference rooms, so you can rest assured you’ll be able to make a fantastic first impression when using a virtual office.
Confidential Projects Can Be Discussed in Private Conversations
Conference rooms in virtual offices offer the benefit of being secure places where confidential information can be discussed in private. In a traditional office space, discussing confidential information at your desk surrounded by coworkers can mean that sensitive information is overheard and possibly leaked.
When you book a physical conference room or hold a virtual meeting through a secure online platform hosted by your virtual office provider, you can have peace of mind in knowing who has access to what is being discussed. In most cases, you have total control over who is admitted into a conference space during your meetings, allowing for greater security when discussing sensitive topics.
Meeting Rooms Offer Technology for Video Conferencing and Presentations
Many physical office spaces that can be booked through a virtual office provider include video conferencing technology. This reduces costs for business owners who may not want to invest in expensive equipment that may only get used a few times a year. Keep in mind that purchasing conference room technology can easily cost thousands of dollars or more depending on your needs.
Virtual offices that offer digital connectivity often provide access to video conferencing software and networking applications that make it easy to connect in conference rooms via the Internet. If you book a physical space through your virtual office provider, you will likely have access to installed equipment at no additional cost. In either case, virtual office conference rooms provide a convenient, low-cost solution to gather teams and meet with groups.
Collaboration is Easier to Facilitate in a Meeting or Conference Room
Collaboration is the key to productivity when working in a team, and conference rooms provide plenty of opportunities to work together on ideas. When you book a conference room in an office building owned by your virtual office provider, you have a chance to meet face-to-face with team members to work through challenges and plan out strategies in person.
When meeting online through virtual office conference rooms, your team can still collaborate on ideas and plan out winning strategies to move your company forward. It’s often easier to do this when everyone is gathered in one place online as opposed to sending multiple emails between different departments in various locations.
You Gain Greater Privacy in Meeting Rooms
Privacy is a big concern in the world of business. All it takes is one overheard conversation to give your competition an edge. Conference rooms available through virtual offices remove a lot of risk when holding private meetings, meaning you can openly talk about proprietary business information without the fear of an unauthorized individual hearing your discussion.
In an online setting, virtual conference rooms usually offer top-notch security and encryption technologies to protect private meetings from being accessed by unauthorized individuals. This allows business owners and founders of startups to have peace of mind in knowing they can speak openly without the risk of information getting into the wrong hands.
Conference Rooms Offer Lots of Space
You can also count on conference rooms to offer lots of space since these rooms are designed to accommodate large groups. When trying to hold a meeting in a traditional office space, everyone has to try to cram together, making for an uncomfortable meeting and harming productivity. In a conference space booked through a virtual office company, your team members and meeting attendees can spread out and enjoy a more comfortable meeting experience.
In an online conference space hosted through a virtual office company, there’s no concern about space since you can have near-limitless attendees log into your digital conference room from their own remote locations. This means everyone is free to focus on the topics being discussed rather than worrying about how close the person is next to them. When employees can focus on the topics being discussed, they tend to get more accomplished, making efficient use of their time and yours.
Conference Rooms Help Everyone to Get on the Same Schedule
Scheduling can always be an issue in a traditional office as everyone is busy. Team members often get pulled in different directions throughout the day, and trying to collaborate on complex projects can be inefficient through email chains. Playing phone tag is also not an option as multiple phone calls to try to collaborate or plan complex projects usually result in more work for everyone.
Conference rooms through virtual offices serve as meeting places where everyone can gather on one schedule, allowing time to be set aside to focus on one common goal or theme. Instead of missed connections and unread emails, the best ideas can be surfaced to ignite focused discussion.
Add-On Amenities Are Available in Many Meeting Rooms
Add-on amenities are another benefit of utilizing conference rooms provided through virtual offices. Just because your business doesn’t occupy a physical office building doesn’t mean that your company can’t receive the same treatment as a full-time tenant. Virtual office conference rooms often offer amenities like water and coffee dispensers, access to comfortable office furniture, break room areas and televisions.
In a digital setting, online conferences through virtual office providers may include access to online group games to play while waiting for a conference to start or video-enhancing software to make everyone look their best on camera. Some digital conference rooms in a virtual office setting also allow access to recording software so that meetings can be replayed at a later date.
It Costs Less to Book a Meeting Room Than to Pay a Monthly Office Lease
The cost of leasing a traditional office space can be quite high, especially if you’re only leasing the office space to have access to conference rooms. Instead, many business owners and startups find that it costs less to use a virtual office since virtual offices provide access to conference rooms. Leasing a traditional office to only use a conference room also results in wasted space in addition to wasted capital.
While it’s true that most virtual offices will still charge a monthly or annual rate to utilize services, the cost of a virtual office is often much lower than that of a traditional office space lease. Conference room access is sometimes included in the cost of a virtual office, but if it is not, the fee for booking a meeting room is usually nominal compared to the cost of leasing a traditional office space.
Meeting Rooms Encourage Creative Brainstorming Among Team Members
Brainstorming is the process of throwing together a lot of ideas to find the best ones. Working in cubicles and even open office concepts can hamper brainstorming efforts because cubicles keep everyone separated, and open office designs are too distracting. In fact, workplace distractions are often cited as one of the biggest productivity killers among business owners and workers.
Meeting in a conference room through a virtual office gives your company a chance to gather everyone together with a focused purpose. Whether your team meets in person in a conference room provided by your virtual office manager or online via virtual conferencing software, the ability to come together to brainstorm can give a huge boost to your company’s productivity.
Conference Rooms Provide Comfortable Spaces for Large Teams
Even if you run a startup with a small team right now, you likely have plans to grow and expand. As your company evolves and team members get added, finding space to meet with everyone to get work done can be a challenge. Traditional office spaces are one solution to this challenge, but traditional office leases can be expensive and lock your business into a long-term contract.
Conference rooms and meeting spaces in virtual offices are the perfect answer for these challenges since conference rooms can often accommodate large groups at once. If you run an established business that already employees a large workforce, you can take advantage of conference rooms through virtual office spaces to collaborate with team members in groups or departments. The cost of using a virtual office is usually comparatively lower, and lease terms may not be as restrictive.
Meeting Rooms Promote Focus and Productivity Because They Offer Peace and Quiet
Distractions in the office are a big reason workers cite a desire to work from home. Remote work provides plenty of quiet time to get things done, but working from home can also cause employees to feel isolated. On top of that, remote workers have to collaborate through phone calls, emails and other methods that simply can’t provide the same benefits as meeting in person.
Using conference rooms through a virtual office, business owners can still gather employees together in meeting spaces to have group discussions. This has the potential to not only boost worker efficiency and productivity but also morale. When workers feel connected, they operate as a team and tend to have higher job satisfaction.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you’ve never considered utilizing a virtual office space to take advantage of conference rooms, it’s completely normal to have some questions. After all, these types of workspaces are relatively new. To help you make the choice that’s right for your company, below are some common questions and answers about virtual office conference rooms:
Why is it important to have a conference room?
Conference rooms are important because they provide meeting areas where large numbers of people can gather to listen, learn and discuss. This promotes teamwork and productivity by ensuring your employees, vendors and business partners are all on the same page.
Why are meeting and conference needed?
Meetings and conferences are needed in most business settings to efficiently present information to groups and foster discussion. While traditional office conference rooms limit discussion to only those physically present in the room, virtual office conference rooms can bring together individuals from around the world.
What is the importance of conference room services for business owners?
Business owners benefit from virtual office conference rooms because these spaces offer a personalized connection. Working with remote teams often means business owners need to use impersonal emails and online chat messages to communicate important information. Virtual conference rooms bring together team members through video conferencing technologies, allowing for direct communication in real-time.
What is included on a conference room setup checklist?
When setting up a virtual office conference room, make sure you include the ability to manage speaking roles first. This will save frustration when a meeting gets started.
Also, create a tech maintenance plan. This ensures all meeting attendees know that their cameras and microphones are working prior to logging into a virtual office conference room.
Lastly, consider adding the ability to record each meeting so that it can be reviewed and shared later. If you are discussing sensitive information, make sure your virtual office networking services provider has security protocols in place to protect conference room access.
What are the most important benefits of meeting rooms for business owners?
While every business is different, the most important benefits of virtual office meeting rooms are efficiency and the promotion of productivity. A virtual office conference room lets business owners efficiently provide information to large groups at once. Virtual meeting rooms also build a sense of camaraderie among team members, boosting morale and productivity in the process.
